Heidlberg, Melbourne, Victoria, 3084 - Austin Hostpital

Smart Cleaning Solutions CEO Nicholas Pastras is writing a series of articles previewing some of Melbourne’s local suburbs and in this article he writes about the historic city of Heidelberg.

Heidelberg is a very old suburb of Melbourne just 18 km north-east of Melbourne's CBD. The suburb is so old, it has some graves in local cemeteries dating right back to the 1850’s. The local primary school was established in 1854 and the suburbs biggest pub, The Old England Hotel on Lower Heidelberg Road was first opened in 1846. Heidelberg is the birthplace of a famous school of Australian painters dubbed "the Heidelberg School of Australian Art" which includes painters like Tom Roberts, Arthur Streeton, Frederick McCubbin .

Today Heidelberg is a wealthy middle class suburb with a vibrant shopping precinct on Burgundy Street which boasts 20 odd cafes, a bevy of restaurants and it is a vibrant food and shopping precinct. Heidelberg is also the domicile of The Austin Hospital and the Mercy Hospital for Women, and these two facilities, combined on the same site, create the largest hospital in Victoria.

The Northern Melbourne Institute of TAFE has a campus at Heidelberg, and the suburb also boasts some very nice parks including Heidelberg Park, which is on the corner of Rosanna Rd and Burgundy street and the very popular Possum Hollow Playground. This park has lots of play equipment for young children including Swings, ropes, a bridge and a flying fox. It also has a rubberised surface making it a very safe playground for young kids. There is also nice grassy picnic areas and electric BBQ’s all enclosed by a child safe fence. There is also a nearby bike track, basketball court and AFL football ground Families with kids love this park and there is a is also a nice walking track that winds down to the Yarra river.

Another feature is the Heidelberg Historical Society Museum, which is housed in the old courthouse building on Jika St & Park Ln next to the Heidelberg Police Station. The small local museum has a substantial collection of about 200 old paintings and 11,000 old photographs, 2300 old maps including estate plans dating from the first surveys in 1837 and the first land sales in 1838 plus another 2000 objects including clothes, knick-knacks and memorabilia that give insight into the suburbs rich history.